1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to brewing devices, namely coffee makers, that display the time since a batch of coffee has been brewed.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the typical home or office, a pot of coffee may stand for hours before anyone brews a fresh pot. During that time, heat and oxidation degrade the aromatic coffee into an ever thickening bitter concoction. A coffee drinker, not noticing the pot is stale, may pour a cup of coffee only to find that it is stale and undrinkable. This problem could be avoided if it were known how long the coffee was standing so that a new brew could be prepared and fresh coffee kept available.
A solution to this problem is described in Zajac et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,956,151, for a BEVERAGE FRESHNESS MONITOR, issued Sep. 21, 1999, in which it is disclosed that fresh coffee is transmissible to light, but as the coffee becomes stale, the organic compounds degrade and the brew becomes less transmissible to the light. To monitor coffee freshness, Zajac passes a beam of light through a transparent coffee pot and the transmissibility of the brew is displayed as a measure of freshness. This appears to be a complex solution.